GDC Open Research in Latin America

1.  Why has GDC created the GDC Open Research in Latin America Gateway?

GDC Difusión Científica has created the GDC Open Research in Latin America Gateway to highlight the work of Latin American researchers, to amplify the impact of their research, and to promote the principles of open science throughout Latin America and beyond.  The GDC Open Research Gateway on F1000Research provides researchers with a route to publish their work quickly in a format that supports discoverability and enables use and reuse by others.  This reflects GDC’s commitment to the scholarly community of Latin America, its dedication to innovation and continuous improvement, and its support of FAIR Data Principles.

2.  Are any other organizations supporting this approach to publishing?

Yes – a number of influential funding agencies, including Wellcome, the European Commission and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, offer their researchers similar publishing opportunities powered by F1000.  Several prominent research institutions also provide publishing venues through F1000, including Iowa State University, the Max Planck Society, the University of Tsukuba, and University College London.

3.  Who can publish their work on the GDC Open Research in Latin America Gateway?

GDC Open Research in Latin America will always be open access for the entire global academic community, serving as a forum for all those interested in reading and sharing knowledge about Latin America.  Researchers from Latin America are particularly encouraged to submit to GDC Open Research, but the Gateway welcomes articles within the scope from scholars around the world. 

4.  What can I publish on the GDC Open Research in Latin America Gateway?

The Gateway will accept a broad range of peer-reviewed article types, including:

• Research Articles
• Case Studies
• Method Articles
• Software Tool Articles
• Data Notes
• Study Protocols
• Reviews
• Editorials
• Policy Briefs

The F1000Research Article Guidelines offer a comprehensive list of article types currently available, along with descriptions and instructions for authors.

The GDC Open Research Gateway also accepts submissions of supplementary research outputs, such as conference proceedings, meeting abstracts, how-to guides, technical reports and other documents, posters and slides.  To submit these materials, please email GDC in the first instance via contacto@difusion.com.mx.  Be sure to include "GDC Open Research Submissions" in the subject line.

5.  What are the submission requirements for publishing an article in the GDC Open Research in Latin America Gateway?

In order for the Gateway to extend the impact and international visibility of Latin American research, all articles and documents must be submitted and published in English.  Posters and slides can contain other languages, but the metadata (authors’ names, affiliations, descriptions, keywords, etc.) must be in English.

In line with FAIR Data Principles GDC Open Research in Latin America requires all articles to include links to underlying data to enable meaningful assessment and to support the broadest re-use of research data.  Like all of F1000Research, the Gateway requires authors to make any data underpinning their findings available to readers and reviewers via a suitable data repository.  F1000-approved repositories support an extensive range of data types such as spreadsheets; images; software source code; imaging, sequence and omics data; and more.  Please consult the data guidelines for more detailed information.

6.  What will it cost to publish on the GDC Open Research in Latin America Gateway?

The costs of open access publication on the Gateway are covered through article processing charges (APCs), which vary based on article type.  APCs for this Gateway are payable to GDC upon publication, either by the author or by a sponsoring institution/funder.

GDC Open Research in Latin America fully supports access to research for all, and offers full waivers or discounts to researchers in World Bank low- and lower-middle-income countries.

Although we encourage submissions from Latin America and around the world, due to restrictions on working with some countries we may be unable to proceed with your submission.

7.  How is the GDC Open Research in Latin America Gateway managed?

The GDC Open Research in Latin America Gateway will be managed by F1000 and operate in the same way as other academic publishing resources.  Submissions are made online and all editorial processes and decisions are handled by F1000.

8.  What are the advantages of publishing on the GDC Open Research in Latin America Gateway?

Rapid publication saves researchers’ time, speeds up the sharing of new findings, and makes articles available for citation much faster.  F1000Research aims to publish submitted articles within a couple of weeks, provided they pass the pre-publication checks, rather than the months it can take elsewhere.

Authors decide when and what they wish to publish, without being pressured to meet the artificial restrictions on word limits, novelty requirements or content bias found in traditional journals.  On the GDC Open Research Gateway, the integrity of the work itself is the main criteria for publication.

The wide range of article types enables researchers to share—and receive credit for—all the different outputs of their research.  This reduces research waste and promotes good research practice.  Researchers can publish software tools, data notes, null findings, registered reports and study protocols, as well as research articles, reviews and method articles.  For a detailed description of each article type, please see our article guidelines.

The open, post-publication peer review process improves transparency, focuses attention on improving research outcomes and promotes constructive dialogue.  The process is author-led, so that authors can suggest the qualified peer reviewers most appropriate to their subject, reviewers whose opinions they value and whose comments they can subsequently cite to demonstrate the quality of their work.  Publishing peer reviewer reports alongside research also supports recognition of reviewers for their invaluable role in research evaluation.

Publishing on GDC Open Research in Latin America supports the principles of open research.  The inclusion of references and links to supporting data enables other researchers to access, analyze, replicate and re-use data.  This enables reproducibility, increases impact, and accelerates future research.

Research should be assessed for its own inherent value.  By providing advanced research metrics, F1000 allows authors and users to gauge the interest, reach, access and use of research outputs.

9.  What is ORCID and why do submitting authors need one to submit an article?

ORCID, or Open Researcher and Contributor Identifier, provides a persistent digital identifier for registered researchers.  The ORCID number distinguishes researchers from one another and links them to their own individual research outputs, publications, grants and professional activities.  Each researcher’s ORCID number and linked records are stored in the ORCID Registry, in an account that the researcher owns and manages.  Using an ORCID allows researchers, as well as their institutions and funders, to manage and track grant data and publications, and is an excellent way to consolidate academic outputs.